White House Official: "Even 200,000 Deaths Would Require Maximum Effort to Be Possible"

US COVID-19 Cases Near 160,000 Mark

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] A senior White House official has once again raised the possibility of 200,000 deaths due to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Debbie Bux, coordinator of the White House COVID-19 Task Force (TF), said in an interview with NBC on the 30th (local time) that when asked whether she agreed with Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, who said a day earlier that millions could be infected and 100,000 to 200,000 could die in the U.S., she replied, "Even with an almost perfect response, that many could die." Coordinator Bux attends the White House COVID-19 TF alongside Director Fauci.

Coordinator Bux said, "If we all respond almost perfectly together, the death toll will be in the range of 100,000 to 200,000, and we do not want even that."

She expressed concern, saying, "The best-case scenario is that all Americans do exactly what is necessary, but I am not sure if such a unified response is happening."

She criticized that it was too late to enforce a 15-day stay-at-home guideline in some urban areas. This guideline, which President Trump hoped to lift early but instead extended by a month the day before, advises avoiding gatherings of more than 10 people and going out.

Coordinator Bux also warned that rural areas need to prepare for the spread of COVID-19. She said, "The coronavirus can spread among many asymptomatic or mild patients. People only see hospitalizations after it spreads to vulnerable groups."

Director Fauci said at a briefing the day before that regarding the extension of social distancing until the end of April, "Coordinator Bux and I spent considerable time reviewing all the data and explained why we think this is the best choice, and the President accepted it."

Their efforts can be seen as having turned President Trump, who hoped for an early end to social distancing, around by emphasizing caution.

Despite the one-month extension of the social distancing guidelines, the increase in COVID-19 cases in the U.S. has not stopped as of this day.

According to Johns Hopkins University as of 3:11 p.m. on the 30th, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the U.S. was 156,931. The death toll was recorded at 28,880. The number of COVID-19 patients in New York State, the largest outbreak area in the U.S., rose to 66,497.